Nigeria Commission Sets Date for 2019 Presidential Election

ABUJA, NIGERIA Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission says that presidential and national assembly elections will be held on Feb. 16, 2019.

The commission made the announcement Tuesday while outlining the 2019 general election timetable. It said the presidential and national assembly primaries will begin in August and campaigning in November of this year.

The commission says elections for governor, state assembly and other local offices will take place March 2, 2019.

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari beat incumbent Goodluck Jonathan in the March 2015 presidential election. It’s not clear if Buhari, who has faced health issues, will run again.

The 2019 vote will be the ninth presidential election in Africa’s most populous nation since its independence from Britain in 1960.

Nigeria’s ongoing challenges include the deadly Boko Haram insurgency and a weak economy.